I’ve always loved hearing birth stories, so when it came time to get pregnant, I read many, many birth stories! Are you currently expecting? Whether it’s your first, second or third, it’s always interesting to hear other birth stories because they are never the same. Even in your own pregnancies, all vary!
I had made it to 40 weeks, 2.5cm dilated and 80-90% effaced with two membrane sweeps and my firstborn did not want to come out!
Truthfully, I did not want an induction but since it was my first, I feared the “what if” and didn’t want to blame myself if something went wrong. My due date was June 25, 2018 however my induction was scheduled for July 2, 2018.
At 41 weeks exactly, I got induced. I had an amazing pregnancy, felt my absolute best! During one of the many checkups, my doctor informed me that I tested positive for Group B Streptococcus (GBS) and was told I’d need a few rounds of antibiotics. That wasn’t fun at all!!
Have you tested positive for GBS? It’s nothing to be concerned about at all, mama! Don’t be worried – you’ll just need a few rounds of antibiotics at the hospital.
The nurse wasn’t the best at putting in the needle and on top of it, she needed to put in the IV extension set (I hope I’m saying that right) which has two extensions so I had one for Pitocin and the other for the antibiotic.
The antibiotic hurts going through the veins, my forearm was in a lot of pain and they had to do it twice to me. Wasn’t the worse thing ever, I promise, but I did not expect that nor had I read that anywhere!!
Related: Hospital Bag Checklist for Labor & Delivery
Arriving At The Hospital
We had arrived at the hospital at 7:30 am, casually putting my hospital gown on, and getting settled in for a LONG day ahead.
The nurse checked me to see how many centimeters dilated I was and I had reached 3cm and 100% effaced. We thought it wouldn’t be too long of a day, but boy were we wrong!
Pitocin started at 8:40 am at level 2 (I think that is 2mU/min) and they keep upping it every 30-60 minutes however by 9:10 am the nurse increased me to a 4 and then again to a 6 by 10:10 am.
I still felt amazing at this point, my husband and I were just hanging around anxiously awaiting to meet our baby boy. My water hadn’t broken on its own and the doctor hadn’t broken it either.
I finally received my first dose of antibiotics for GBS at 10:10 am and then they increased the Pitocin again to 8 by 10:45 am. By 11:30 am the Pitocin reached 10 and then 12 at 12:50 pm. They seemed to be increasing me rather quickly however at this point I still was not feeling any pain or contractions.
The nurse did make a comment about holding off on increasing because too many contractions were coming on and they wanted to wait to see if they would space out to not harm the baby. If it were to continue they would drop me to half (6).
I can’t entirely remember but I think she ended up dropping it to an 8 or 10 because they were coming on too fast. The entire time my son’s heart rate did not drop, I felt great and I did not need oxygen.
I had read a lot of blogs, books, etc. and everyone recommended staying calm, stay positive, and your body will know what to do. Having your mind in a calm, positive state of mind does wonders during labor.
After monitoring my contractions to be sure the baby was OK, they did lower the Pitocin a bit. The nurse decided to check my dilation again around 1:30 pm and I had reached 4.5cm! We were slowly getting there!!
Water Broke & Contractions Begin
I had been laying in bed, hanging out, chatting with my husband when all of a sudden around 2:50 pm I felt two kicks. They both seemed off, more like something banging inside of my stomach, and then boom… my water broke!
A gush of water just came flooding out of me, and it was super warm. I looked over at my husband and said “uh… I THINK my water just broke!!”
He immediately paged the nurse, who then came in and lifted the covers and sure enough, my water broke!!!
The fun finally begins…
Contractions started to be very intense at this point. I bounced on a ball, my husband pushed my sides as tight as he could to help ease the pain, and I even tried walking around.
I had read books and blogs about how to increase labor but when you get into that level of pain, it sort of just leaves your brain. My husband did what he could, and remembered a few things that I had told him but I was kind of upset! The nurse was barely inside the room with us. It would have been nice if she would have helped or suggested different positions to help ease the pain.
Truthfully, I did not want an epidural. I am not against them however I was hoping to go a little longer without it.
The Epidural
By 4:40 pm I ended up getting an epidural and felt so relieved. The epidural did not hurt and it was very quick!
But then … I didn’t realize I had to press a button to get the epidural to begin/get stronger. The nurse I had all morning was an OK nurse – she hurt every time she would check me, she’d leave the room and not be very helpful with the process. Her shift was about to end and she told me to “press the button”…
So I pressed the button to get the epidural going and thought that was it. A new nurse came in for the night shift and I asked her if I was supposed to be numb on one side but not the other. Of course, her response was no… I could feel everything on my right side, contractions and all but my left side was numb enough where I could still slightly lift my leg but felt nothing.
The nurse told me to press the button again, so I did. She told me that I was pressing the button wrong and you had to hold it until it beeped. Why wouldn’t the first nurse tell me this?!!!! So I pressed it again but it still wasn’t doing anything to my right side.
Sooo… the first nurse was not that great. She wasn’t helpful, she was barely in the room, always wanted to check me which I wished she didn’t because it made me anxious and she hurt while checking me. It wasn’t the worse experience but I wish I had more support, especially during my first labor.
The first nurse also told me in the beginning when they ask you questions, “Will you be getting an epidural?” … I had said I’m not against it but I’d love to try to see if I can go without. She told me that it’s so painful and I’d probably want one.
I should have known she wouldn’t be too helpful after that comment, ugh!
Anyways, I labored with my left side numb and my right slightly with pain but I dealt with it and it wasn’t all that bad. The second shift nurse was so helpful and she NEVER left my side.
Side note: If you do not feel comfortable with the nurse you have, please do not suffer. You have the right to change nurses! Don’t ever feel bad, or feel guilty. You need to have an amazing support team around you and if it takes you asking for a new nurse, please mama do it!
It’s Time To Push
Finally, at 5:40 pm, I was checked again to see my dilation progress and I finally reached 9.5cm!! It was GO TIME to start pushing soon and we thought baby boy would arrive so soon.
By 7 pm I started to push… and push… and push… and push!
8pm… nothing. 9pm… nothing. The nurse had me push in a few different positions, and my son was so stubborn he was wedged to the left side and wouldn’t come out. They could see his head slightly but just wasn’t enough to push him out.
She even checked to be sure I had been pushing correctly. I of course hadn’t… I truly thought you pushed like you normally just “push”, right? Nothing to it? Yeah, I was wrong. You need to push like your pooping… that is the right way!
The doctor came in around 9:45 pm and had me push some more. He said the only other option besides a c-section which he knew I didn’t need, would be to vacuum my son out. That of course entailed me getting cut a bit which I agreed to and he could only try three times.
What a way to keep me feeling pressured… I had three pushes to get my son out or else I’d need a c-section.
He Is Born!
At this point, the doctor gives you a few needles to numb you down there before he makes a little cut. By 10:07 pm, after 3 hours of pushing and 12+ hours of labor, our baby boy was born! Thankfully I only had to push 3 times and he was out in under 3 minutes but boy was that a lot of work.
I was exhausted, hadn’t eaten in hours, felt so weak, shivering… but it was all worth it!!!
I ended up tearing 4th degree, and they had me laying on my back for a while, while the doctor took some time to stitch me back up. My son had a cone head from the vacuum which went away by days 3-4.
Healing time for a 4th degree wasn’t too bad. I took very good care of myself, constantly using the peri bottle to clean with warm water, and softly dabbing to wipe with a gauze pad. I also used witch hazel pads to help ease the pain.
Our firstborn was born on July 2, 2018, at 10:07 pm weighing 7lbs 6oz and 20.5″. Funny story, we had his pediatrician appointment a few days after he was born and his height went from 20.5″ at birth to 20″ because his conehead haha!
Related: How to make your own Postpartum Care Recovery Kit
Positive Vibes, Positive Mind, Positive Energy
I hope if you are reading this, it puts you at ease for your birth. I promise it’s an amazing experience. If you stay calm, stay positive and be patient, all will be amazing! Your body knows what to do and how to birth a baby and it’s an indescribable feeling and experience.
Whether you choose to birth naturally, have an epidural, or c-section, mama you are amazing! Don’t let anyone change your mindset or steer you in a different direction. You know what is best for you and your baby and no one can tell you otherwise!
One more thing… would I ever do it again? In a heartbeat… I’ll be posting my secondborn’s birth story soon!
Comment below if you have any questions or share your birth story with us!